Hey guys- thanks for all the nice words about Poker Static. Poker fans seem to be really into all the interviews, strategy shows, etc. Props to Ziigmund for doing one of the classic interviews of all time. The guy is hilarious and seems to be a genuinely nice guy. A bunch of people have been asking for just the audio that goes along with all the video we are doing at Poker Static. I know the PS web guy is working on all of that, but for now you can download it here. Since Poker Static is a video-based site, sometimes the audio just doesn’t do the video justice. Thanks to eloisezilla from 2+2 for the file conversions.
I will post more details about everything later, but I wanted to let you know that I have been grinding the $12 and $24 90-mans on Full Tilt Poker under the guidance of Nick Rainey and rainmanpoker.net. I mainly play the $12, but I have sprinkled a few $24 in there. Before I started on Nick’s program, I was (am prob still am) a 100% fish. I hit rock bottom of the pond and decided to make a change. At the beginning of this month I decided to give Nick’s training program a chance. I’ve been reading, participating in training sessions, reviewing hands (on my own and with Nick), and in-general, behaving and acting like a poker player. Don’t get me wrong, I probably should be doing even more of this, but it’s tough to juggle a 10-hour workday, my chick, and poker.
BUT, I am proud to say that I am on pace to have my first winning month in a LONG, LONG time. Feels good. In fact, I just won my first $24 90-man and feel like I just won a WSOP bracelet. Gay, I know, but the hard work/paying off thing has me pumped up. Don’t get me wrong, it has not been an easy month. It’s been chalked full some of the worst beats of all time. I’ve gone to sleep frustrated and bitter. I’ve often pondered if it’s impossible for me not to be a donk. But I have made up my mind to grind through it and give success a chance…..and so far, it’s working.
Will post stats, graphs, etc. at the end of the month.
Hey guys, check out the article linked below. It basically breaks down why poker is good for you. Our boy Nick Rainey tweeted “u should read once a day if you’re involved with poker”.
Like a true donk, I’ve been playing the HU super turbo’s on Full Tilt. If you have ever played these, you know how insane the games are. 90% of the action is preflop and you witness some of the sickest beats, suckouts, and insane hands. Check out a hand that I just played a minute ago when I picked up KK in the BB. He was about 2% on the flop and 4% on the turn.
Button: $195
BB: $405
Dealt to: BB
Pre-flop:
Button raises to $195 and is all-in, BB calls $165,
Flop:($405) (2 Players)
Turn: ($405) (2 Players)
River: ($405) (2 Players)
Results:
Button Showed
BB Showed
Button wins $390
***Oh, 2 hands later I got it all in with A3 off vs his QQ and flopped an ace and went on to win the match. But who likes to talk about and show hands like that LOL.
We are back this weekend with a a brand new show and a brand new guest. In fact, we have a bunch of cool guests lined up in the near future that poker fans will love. Once everything is 100% confirmed, I will let you know exactly who will be the show. As always, thanks a ton for supporting MPR.
I can’t stay away from Rush Poker. Once you have been exposed to such quick ACTION, it’s almost impossible to go back to playing the regular tables. On top of that, I was playing live in Atlantic City last weekend (lost 2 BI’s) and it was excruciating. The home game will be even worse. Rush Poker has us all jaded. On the results side, I won a few buy-ins last night so I am back to even at the RP tables. I ran super good and was lucky to hit a few draws. Oh, and AA vs KK helped a bit . The players are still really good and it will definitely be a challenge to squeak out a profit.
I have been playing a ton of Rush Poker lately and I have to say that I love it. Check out the video below if you are not familiar with it. I really do think that this is the future of online poker. The days of playing boring poker are over. I’ve been 4 tabling the rush poker tables, trying to figure out the right way to play the game. After 5 hours or so of playing, I’ve basically broken even. The swings can be brutal and (as always) when things are going well, I feel like Phil Ivey. I’m flopping sets, hitting my nut flush draws, picking up dead money, timing my bluffs perfectly, etc. BUT…..when the game isn’t so easy, I’m waking up with KK against AA, having my set run down by an open-ender, etc. Really can be tough to stomach. Tilting is really easy when you are seeing a new hand instantaneously, while still cringing from the beat.
Here are a few rules I’ve been playing by. Let me know if you guys think I’m missing something or totally off on any of these rules. I’m still trying to learn the best way to beat (or not lose, HA) the rush poker tables.
- Tight is right. When seeing so many hands, it’s impossible to be a loose player and win. Unless you are absurdly talented.
- Position is everything. 3-betting will often take down a pot preflop, knowing your opponent can quickly fold and move on to another hand.
- Just muck marginal hands that can get you in trouble. A hands like KQ seem to only win small pots and lose big ones. Just not worth playing, even in a limped pot.
- Suited connectors are tempting to play, but calling preflop- missing- and folding on the flop can overtime cost you a ton of money. I will play a hand Ax suited if I can see a cheap flop.
- Seeing cheap flops with pairs seem to be the way to win the big pots. Flop a set, and hope to cooler someone’s AA or KK, or hope your opponent is overplaying top pair.
- Don’t go crazy with AK preflop. If you 3-bet and someone shoves, just let it go. They almost always have you crushed.
- AQ and AJ off are trap hands. 20 minutes ago I stacked off with AQ on a Q97 board. Donk had KK
- HOPE that you aren’t on the wrong side of AA vs KK- because it happens ALL the time.
Here are a few pics from our radio row broadcast earlier today. A ton of players (current and former) were all over the place. I spotted Eli Manning, Deion Sanders, Tiki Barber, Matthew Stafford and a bunch more. Here is Marshall Faulk and Eddie George doing the show….
Hey guys, EB and I are heading to Miami tomorrow morning to broadcast from Radio Row. We have a bunch of SICK guests lined for for the morning show (Joe Montana, Marshall Faulk, Eddie George, Benard Hopkins, and more). Radio row is at the Miami Convention Center and is basically the heart of where everything is going on. NFL Network, ESPN, etc are all broadcasting from there. A ton of athletes and celebs swing by to do interviews with all the radio/TV shows. Should be good times….
Since we’ll be doing Super Bowl stuff, we will probably run a Mediocre Poker Radio best-of show featuring an interview or two that you guys might have forgotten about or have not heard. There are actually a ton of interviews that are not posted in the podcast section of this site, so hopefully you will check out the interview that we select. We’ll be back next week with a fresh new show and interview.
We are gonna hit up a few cool parties too, so we should have some good pics to post here later in the week. Personally, I am hoping to snap a pic with The Situation! HA! Not kidding actually….
I had been really struggling in the heads-up turbo (not super turbo) sit n go’s on Full Tilt Poker against players who are super aggressive. I found myself calling small raises preflop, not connecting, and folding on the flop. And when I would get sick of doing that, I would try to mix it up and bluff on an A-6-2, just to get called down by a pair of dueces. I would check raise a Q-4-4 flop and get called down by K-high. I’m guessing im not the only one, but I find it very difficult to play against players who consistently put you to the test and refuse to relinquish a pot. Oh, and NO ONE folds to a continuation bet anymore BTW. How many times can I raise preflop with AK, the flops comes out 10-8-3, I continuation bet and am re-raised and forced to fold. It’s so tough to pick up chips against a super aggressive opponent. Very frustrating.
After going through some hands and thinking about how to play these guys, I have decided to try to slow the game down, but at the same time put the pressure on my opponent and force them to make a decision for all their chips. Here’s an example: the blinds are 20-40 and the chips are even at 1500. Opponent raises to 100, and I pick up a good HU hand like KQ, 44, etc. Instead of calling or raising, I just shove in that spot and pick up the 100 chips. No need to play a pot out of position against a player that will likely put me to the test on every street. Hyper aggressive players will fold preflop for all their chips. Their style of plays works because they pick up so many loose chips postflop. I am doing little to no calling out of position.
In position, I am limping with a wide range of hands including my monsters. I will limp with AK or AQ and if raised, I will shove it all in. If my opponent checks back, I will play the hand and not be forced into a huge pot without an actual hand. Plus, my hand is always disguised. Let’s say I limp with AJ and the flop comes A-10-5. I will make a standard bet, which is often bluff-raised by my opponent. I then shove, and he folds. There is almost no play post-flop where I don’t have a strong hand. And if I do have a strong hand, I’m getting it all in. No check/calling and allowing the aggressive player to grind me down or force me to make a bad decision for all my chips.
I THINK this is the best way to play HU sit n go’s against players like this. Obviously, if I’m playing a guy who is not very aggressive or plays super tight, I will change styles and crank up the pressure.
Just a few thoughts….I could actually be totally wrong in my thinking.
Twice per year our morning radio show, The Junkies, hosts a $300 buy-in poker tournament at The Borgata in Atlantic City. Junkies Poker Open VII goes down this Thursday, November 12th at 10AM. We are expecting over 500 of our listeners to make the trip from Washington, DC to Atlantic City for the tournament! First place should be between 35-40k! We are taking walkups, so if you’re a Junkies listeners or a Mediocre Poker Radio listener, feel free to join us for the tournament on Thursday.
Since we will be at the best poker room on the east coast, EB and I will be taping Mediocre Poker Radio from the Borgata poker room. We will give you all of our cash game/tourney updates and stories. We also expect a few special guests to join us in person and on the phone, so don’t miss this weeks episode of MPR!!!
. The players are still really good and it will definitely be a challenge to squeak out a profit.
